Children’s right to freedom of expression in the context of students’ appearance. A comparative study of Poland and the United Kingdom
Anna Babicka-Wirkus · Compare A Journal of Comparative and International Education · 2023
The article concerns the issue of school regulations of students’ appearance in the context of violating children’s right to freedom of expression. The analysis of documents from 30 schools (18 schools in the United Kingdom and 12 schools in Poland) shows areas of control over students’ appearance and bodies, which, in turn, is intended to lead to their homogenisation and shaping into conformist citizens. The analysis showed that the students’ appearance is controlled both in Polish as well as UK schools, and both in those schools which require uniforms as well as those which do not. Most of the regulations relate to girls’ appearance, making their bodies subject to a greater number of mandates and prohibitions than boys’ bodies. Under the guise of the politics of neutrality and safety in schools, regulations of students’ appearance create inequalities and generate fictional threats.